719: Chapter 23, Planting the Seeds of Continental Turmoil _1 719: Chapter 23, Planting the Seeds of Continental Turmoil _1 After stirring up a scene, Hudson was left out of it.
Despite ostensibly being a warlock, he was in over his head.
Even after cramming a bunch of magic knowledge, the allotted study time was too short for him to master it all.
A leopard birthing an egg, no matter how rare, is still less pressing than the letter Hudson was holding.
The debt crisis in the Moxi Duchy was about to explode, and his old friend, King George, wrote to him, pouring out his grievances.
While there was no explicit request for money, the desperation revealed in the letter was all due to financial drought.
The fact that George was writing to Hudson now appeared to be an exchange between old friends, but in reality, he was seeking advice.
The idea to issue bonds indeed came from Hudson.
However, he also intentionally reminded the Moxi People to keep their debt under control.
Regrettably, debt, once instigated, is like an irresistible force, pushing one down a no-return path.
After the war, Hudson closely monitored the situation in the Moxi Duchy, anticipating their debt explosion.
Managing to delay the debt crisis by robbing Peter to pay Paul proves George to be an adept ‘wall builder’.
Pressing the major nobles who were desperate to shake off the obligations and taking borrowing new to repay old to extremes, Hudson had to say he was impressed.
However, no matter how much one delayed a debt crisis, the crisis always existed and couldn’t just vanish into thin air.
Glancing at the visitor, Hudson sighed and said, “Viscount Rakel, I fully understand your King’s situation.
I don’t have a perfect solution, but I do have a sour idea.
No matter how strained the public coffers, defaulting on debts is out of the question.
If your country still wishes to survive on this continent, those debts cannot be shrugged off.
Your country is currently just unable to repay the debt in cash.
That doesn’t mean you are unable to repay the debt in other ways.
For example: knowledge inheritance!
What can be considered common knowledge among the major nobles may be an unattainable treasure for the minor nobles.
Your current situation works to your advantage.
A large portion of the debt has been transferred to minor nobles, providing your country with a window of opportunity.
Instead of waiting for the debtors to come collecting after the debt explosion, why not strike pre-emptively?
If you can figure out what the minor nobles holding the large foreign debts currently need the most, you can address their problems directly.
After all, with something like knowledge, even if it’s copied a hundred times or a thousand times, it wouldn’t change its format in your hands.
Theoretically, since long as you sign a confidentiality contract with the debtors beforehand, this kind of deal can continue in secret.
However, once this kind of deal gets out, you could be in huge trouble, and will likely offend many people!”
As soon as Hudson finished speaking, Rakel was taken aback.
This was not just any back-handed scheme; it was downright dangerous.
Inherited knowledge strengthens societal status.
The implicit agreement among the ruling class to block knowledge inheritance is a key part of maintaining societal order.
If they were to break the monopoly on knowledge inheritance, the lower nobles might have a chance to rise up given the right opportunity.
Though these up and coming nobles have slim chances of succeeding, there are many of them!
If the base threshold is high enough, some of them are bound to come out on top.
The new players joining the game would inevitably increase competition among the ruling elites.
The consequences of such actions would be not just the reshuffling of a particular region or country, but a comprehensive political reshuffle of society.
As the instigators, they would inevitably encounter opposition from the traditional ruling class.
“Marshal, the aftershocks of doing this would be enormous.
If word gets out, the Duchy won’t be able to withstand it!”
Hudson slightly nodded, and then shook his head.
“What you said is true, this is indeed troublesome.
But if there weren’t major repercussions, how could it be considered a sour idea?
Your country owes at least tens of millions of gold coins in debt.
If not worse, it may even reach a hundred million.
How could you possibly repay such a huge amount without making sacrifices?
You have already tried imposing a debt repayment tax.
It has proven that repayment through tax isn’t viable when confronted with such a massive debt.
Post-war reconstruction consumes a lot of resources.
Given the current situation of the Moxi Duchy, you simply do not have the ability to repay the debt.
Now, you have two choices: secretly leverage inherited knowledge to repay the debt; or sell in private, some special resources that can be produced in bulk but are blocked by a mutual understanding among all.
Regardless of which route you take, it will be a challenge to the current order.
In my view, the best choice is to first find a way to appease some of the debtors, then raise funds to repay part of the debt.
Even if some actions are unconventional, as long as you keep it secret, outsiders won’t know what you have done!
You fear exposure, but the minor nobles involved in the trade fear it more.
At least before they rise, they will strictly keep it confidential.
Just by rumors alone, the minor chaos it triggers shouldn’t be unbearable for your country.
Even if it is ultimately exposed, that would be many years later.
By then, your country would have recovered, and with the Keep reading on NovelHub - where stories come alive!”